Artist Spotlight: Jeroen W. Mantel

Jeroen W. Mantel is a Dutch photographer with a huge track record in fashion photography. He works for clients like Elle and Tommy Hilfiger. We made a video about him where he tells his story and where you can see him in full action WITH his famous eye patch! Enjoy!

Jeroen W. Mantel got into photography because of a clear “God moment”. He asked a friend if he could take a picture with his camera. Once he held the camera and looked through the lens he thought “this is what I need to do”. From that moment on he never let go of the camera.

Before he started studying, Jeroen did an internship a an advertising photography studio. Afterwards he went to the academy and did several internships. That’s how he got in touch with fashion photography.

His first big and impressive job was a campaign for Gus jeans where he flew across the world during a 10 days shoot in Brazil and Berlin. For him that was one of the jobs that made a real impression on him as a rookie.

The most fun jobs for Jeroen are the ones where he can focus on the character of the models. He thinks the people behind the image are what interests him the most.

Most of the time it’s the little differences that make a picture interesting or get it rejected, because credibility is super important.

In the end it shouldn’t be about him but about the people he photographs. He thinks that is the change that is going on right now: as a photographer he wants to step back and provide the space to capture and show the person.